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Day: August 31, 2005

Figured I’d post something a bit on the lighter side this evening to try and lift spirits a little bit.

Do any of you watch the Weather Channel? I usually watch it in the morning before I get ready for work and shortly before I go to bed. I don’t think I’ve ever witnessed a single blooper when I’ve watched. But this link will take you to some Weather Channel bloopers, some of which are pretty funny. Make sure you scroll down and click on the different images to view the different videos. Each video is about a minute or so long. Enjoy!

… to some people, mainly the media. In typical fashion, this AP article implies that the President’s cutting short his vacation in order to return to Washington to monitor the Hurricane Katrina efforts is all about image:

WASHINGTON (AP) – President Bush, who crafted a take-charge image from the Sept. 11 attacks, faces a stiff challenge in responding to Hurricane Katrina.

Cutting short his vacation and marshaling the power of the federal government could help reverse his sliding job approval rating. But the president’s hands-on approach looks a bit too political for some, and makes him an easy target should Katrina’s victims start looking for somebody to blame during the long, costly road to recovery.

In purely political terms, the question is whether Bush can live up to the tough, can-do image he cultivated after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Or whether he falls short of expectations and pays a political price, as his father did after Hurricane Andrew slammed Florida in 1992.

See? His "tough, can-do image" was "cultivated" after the 9-11 attacks. In other words, he either wasn’t a "tough can-doer" prior to the attacks or not much of one. Don’t you feel so much better now knowing that?

Yet another fine example of our ‘impartial’ MSM hard at work, "cultivating" their own image, with a wee bit of, ahem, natural fertilizer, if you catch my meaning.

They aren’t coming here to Charlotte, but for anyone interested in travelling to Raleigh, the "Sheehan supporters" will be there Thursday September 15th through Sunday the 18th. Anyone who attends the counter-protests there, or anywhere else for that matter – please send photos to me and I’ll post some of them here. Here is the most up to date listing for the tour dates:

VIENNA, Austria — From papal prayers to telegrams from China, the world reacted with an outpouring of compassion Wednesday for the victims of Hurricane Katrina messages tinged by shock that a disaster of this scale could occur in the United States.

Islamic extremists rejoiced in America’s misfortune, giving the storm a military rank and declaring in Internet chatter that "Private" Katrina had joined the global jihad, or holy war. With "God’s help," they declared, oil prices would hit $100 a barrel this year.

Venezuela’s government, which has had tense relations with Washington, offered humanitarian aid and fuel if requested.

The storm was seen as an equalizer — proof that any country, weak or strong, can be victimized by a natural disaster. Images of flood-ravaged New Orleans earned particular sympathy in central Europe, where dozens died in raging floodwaters only days ago.

"Nature proved that no matter how rich and economically developed you are, you can’t fight it," says Danut Afasei, a local official in Romania’s Harghita county, where flooding killed 13 people last week.

Throughout Europe, concerned citizens lamented the loss of life and the damage caused to New Orleans, often described as one of North America’s most "European" cities.

French President Jacques Chirac and German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder sent messages of sympathy to President Bush. Chirac, who has famously quarreled with Bush over the Iraq war, addressed this letter, "Dear George."

Pope Benedict XVI said he was praying for victims of the "tragic" hurricane while China’s President Hu Jintao expressed his "belief that that the American people will definitely overcome the natural disaster and rebuild their beautiful homeland."

Britain’s Queen Elizabeth II also sent a message to Bush saying she was "deeply shocked and saddened" at the devastation caused by the hurricane and expressing her condolences, "especially to the families of those who have lost their lives, to the injured and to all who have been affected by this terrible disaster."

The U.S. Embassy in Bern, Switzerland — a capital at the foot of the Alps hit by flooding last week — said calls were rushing in from Swiss individuals and institutions looking for a way to donate to relief efforts.

"We are getting calls from the Swiss public looking to express their condolences, (and) people are also asking for an account number where they can make donations," said spokesman Daniel Wendell.

The Internet-edition Vienna daily Der Standard had recorded 820 postings commenting on a front-page story on the hurricane. In one of the postings, signature "Emerald" asked where money could be donated to the victims, but the question sparked a debate about whether a rich country like the United States needed such aid.

Artists with ties to America’s Gulf Coast will participate in a live benefit special, "A Concert for Hurricane Relief," to air on Sept. 2 on NBC, MSNBC and CNBC.

(MSNBC is a joint venture of Microsoft and NBC.)

Musicians appearing will include Tim McGraw, Harry Connick Jr., and Wynton Marsalis. Non-musical artists, including actor Leonardo DiCaprio and others, will also participate. The hour-long music-driven special will air at 8 p.m. ET live on the East Coast, tape-delayed on the West.

"Today" show host Matt Lauer will host the telethon portion of the programming from NBC’s studios in New York. All viewers will be encouraged to donate to the American Red Cross Disaster Relief Fund in support of hurricane relief through its Web site and donation hotline (www.redcross.org or 1-800-HELP NOW).

The fund helps the Red Cross provide shelter, food, counseling and other assistance to those suffering from the hurricane and other disasters.

There are going to be some long and difficult days ahead, but as always the US military is up to the challenge. Our men and women in the armed forces are second to none when it comes to doing what’s necessary to help and protect us both abroad, and right here at home.

On the blogging homefront, La Shawn Barber has a list of links on blogger commentary and offers some donation suggestions as well. And requests the most important thing of all: prayers for the victims.

Thursday, bloggers from across the world will unite in a day of blogging – focused on bringing attention to the problems they are facing and will continue to face for months in the Gulf Coast area – and asking readers to give the charity of that respective blogger’s choosing. I will be participating in this and requesting donations be given to the American Red Cross (1-800-HELP-NOW). I will be putting up a permanent link to the American Red Cross on this blog later today.

Those who would like to donate to another charity instead of the Red Cross should visit here and scroll down past the list of bloggers participating as there is a list of charities there including links. There are plenty of them. Our fellow citizens need our help in their hour of need and not just with donations but prayers as well. Some cities have been completely devastated. This is a national tragedy that deserves a national response from all of us.

Update: Fellow blogger Paul at Wizbang is out of work and no longer has a home due to the devastation from Katrina. Click here to find out how you can help him. Hat tip to Michelle Malkin, who has the latest news and information on how to help the victims.

Late evening update: Jim at bRight and Early has created a Red Cross banner you can display at your site. He’s got the CSS coding all written out for anyone interested.

Late Tuesday, Gov. Blanco spokeswoman Denise Bottcher described a disturbing scene unfolding in uptown New Orleans, where looters were trying to break into Children’s Hospital.

Bottcher said the director of the hospital fears for the safety of the staff and the 100 kids inside the hospital. The director said the hospital is locked, but that the looters were trying to break in and had gathered outside the facility.

The director has sought help from the police, but, due to rising flood waters, police have not been able to respond.

At the Wal-Mart on Tchoupitoulas Street, an initial effort to hand out provisions to stranded citizens quickly disintegrated into mass looting. Authorities at the scene said bedlam erupted after the giveaway was announced over the radio.

While many people carried out food and essential supplies, others cleared out jewelry racks and carted out computers, TVs and appliances on handtrucks.

Some officers joined in taking whatever they could, including one New Orleans cop who loaded a shopping cart with a compact computer and a 27-inch flat screen television.

Unbelievable. The city of New Orleans has descended into chaos as, unfortunately, natural disasters sometimes tend to bring out the worst in people. It’s difficult to get them all the help they need seeing as that the roads, bridges, and highways leading into NO are mostly impassable.